手镯 (shǒu zhuó) — bracelet; handcuffs (less common)

Definition

noun

bracelethandcuffs (less common)

Measure word · 只

手镯。
Tā dài le yí gè yín shǒu zhuó.
She is wearing a silver bracelet.
手镯。
Zhè ge shǒu zhuó shì mā ma sòng gěi wǒ de shēng rì lǐ wù.
This bracelet is a birthday gift from my mother.
手镯。
Shāng diàn lǐ yǒu hěn duō piào liang de shǒu zhuó.
There are many beautiful bracelets in the store.

Compound word

构词法gòucífǎ

偏正piānzhèngModifier + head

The first part narrows down the second: it says what kind of thing the head is.

镯zhuóbracelet

手 'hand' tells where the 镯 'bracelet' is worn, giving a bracelet for the hand.

Characters in this word

A drawing of the thing itself, worn down over three thousand years into a few strokes.

手 draws a five-fingered human hand: the top line is a bent middle finger, and the horizontal lines show the other four fingers.

Most characters — around four in five — are built this way: one part hints at the meaning, the other at the pronunciation.

This origin belongs to the traditional form 鐲; 镯 is its simplified writing.

金蜀鐲

Meaning part形符xíngfú

Sound part声符shēngfú

蜀

蜀shǔ鐲zhuó

The sound has drifted apartThe sound part was a clue two thousand years ago — it often still helps, but not always.

The traditional form 鐲 shows 金 (metal) plus 蜀 for the sound; the simplified 镯 is a later shorthand.

Appears in